In a shocking, bracket-busting upset, yesterday's matchup ended with Brother Lawrence driving out St. Patrick from Lent Madness 2020 57% to 43%. Erin go bragh? Erin go HOME!
Today we have an intriguing matchup between two saints of different eras. Margaret of Costello was a blind, disabled medieval nun who overcame great hardship to follow her faith. Simon Gibbons was Canada's first Inuit priest, born in the mid-19th century.
With this decision, the door will close on the first full week of Lent Madness 2020. From here on out, voting will take place only on the weekdays of Lent. Which means the Lent Madness faithful must suffer the indignity of Lent Madness Withdrawal (LMW) on the weekends of Lent. This is a difficult condition to endure and, at this time, there is no known cure. Please be kind to yourselves, friends. And we'll see you bright and early on Monday morning as James Solomon Russell faces Evelyn Underhill.
Now go vote!
Margaret of Castello
Margaret of Castello (to whom I am not related…like 99 percent sure) was born sometime in 1287. We don’t know when exactly, because her parents—a noble couple named Parisio and Emilia—did not care for her.
She was born blind with a severe curvature of the spine that inhibited walking. Her parents resolved to hide her away, so that her appearance could not bring shame to the family honor. However, Margaret, as she was named by a kind maid, resolutely refused to die. Despite her parents locking her in a back room and forbidding her to see anyone, she managed to win the sympathy of the household staff and the local priest, who taught her the Christian faith.
One day, Emilia heard stories of a Franciscan friar who was performing miracle cures in Castello. She convinced her husband to take Margaret there, in hopes of a “cure.” They wrapped the teenager in a black shroud and smuggled her to the town, but as luck would have it, the friar had died while they were making the journey. Emilia tried to get another friar to “heal” Margaret, but no cure was forthcoming. Frustrated and embarrassed, the parents abandoned their daughter in Castello and went home.
But Margaret didn’t give up. The local beggars in town took pity on her and taught her how to beg so she could feed herself. She made her way by teaching the street children to read and learn different prayers. She also watched the children while their parents worked, essentially running a medieval daycare. In 1303, she came across some Dominican friars and begged to be allowed to join their order as a laywoman. She was inducted into the third order of the Dominicans and wore the habit until her death at the age of thirty-three. When she died, crowds from all over the countryside came to her funeral, drawn by their love of her and her compassion. They demanded that she be buried on church grounds.
Margaret is particularly loved by those who are disabled themselves. Unlike other saints, who either suffered momentarily in the process of martyrdom or suffered only to be healed, Margaret was born disabled and lived a life that showed Christ’s love in a disabled body. Her quiet love and resolute life won out against the ignorance of society and of the Church, in a struggle that inspires many today.
Collect for Margaret of Castello
Compassionate God, your daughter Margaret experienced the pain of rejection, and the joy of serving you and your people; grant to us, we pray, the courage and compassion to find your presence wherever we look, and the reflection of your beauty shining in every face we encounter. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Simon Gibbons
God loves a “hilarious” giver, according to Leonard F. Hatfield’s rendering of 2 Corinthians in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography. And Simon Gibbons, it seems, was that.
Born in 1851, Gibbons was Canada’s first ordained Inuit priest, a prolific church builder, and a gifted communicator. At the time Hatfield wrote his biography of the saint in 1990, stories were still told in the parishes where Gibbons ministered that he had been discovered on an ice-floe off the coast of Labrador.
Other stories, which Gibbons also may have encouraged, were shared about his first appointment as an Anglican missionary on Cape Breton Island, at the eastern edge of Nova Scotia. With food and a change of clothes on his back, he traveled from place to place across the mission, sometimes on trails that could only be navigated by snowshoe in the winter. One story has him hopping across drifting ice to cross an inlet; another, crawling along a frozen shoreline to reach an isolated community at Christmastime.
Gibbons traveled twice to Great Britain, where he raised money to build new churches, preached at Westminster Abbey, and appeared before Queen Victoria. While he was bullied as a child for being Inuit, he found that in England, in his own words, “my face was my fortune.” Large audiences came to hear Canada’s first Inuit priest preach, and reports praised his “musical voice,” “fluent and eloquent speech” and “attractive personality,” according to Hatfield.
But Gibbons’s time as a traveling missionary seemed to have taken a toll on his health. He served two more parishes in Nova Scotia, taking some time in between to recover. He became known as “champion church builder of the diocese,” assisting in the construction of seven new churches in Nova Scotia. Many still can be recognized by their distinctive bell towers, which he helped construct himself.
Gibbons died in 1896 and, befitting one of the stories he encouraged, he was buried in the Parrsboro parish cemetery during what was reportedly one of the wildest winter storms of the century. He is remembered by the Anglican Church of Canada on December 14.
Collect for Simon Gibbons
Almighty God, whose will it is to be glorified in your saints, and who raised up your servant Simon Gibbons to be a light in the world: Shine, we pray, in our hearts, that we also in our generation may show forth your praise, who called us out of darkness into your marvelous light; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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144 comments on “Margaret of Castello vs. Simon Gibbons”
A fine and admirable man, but who could out-saint that little blind girl?
Margaret for the win!
We’ll vote for Simon, and hope he’ll get the last laugh today!
Brilliant!
St Margaret, an inspiration through her personal suffering How strong , brave, lovingI My vote - Margaret!
Margaret was a dwarf. Simon had "Eskimo physique." I found it difficult to choose between these two figures. I recently saw a play, a "Regency rom com," in which the heroine was played by a dwarf. All the furniture on the set had to be lowered for her, and the leading man had to get on his knees to talk with her. Try as I might, I was unable to suspend disbelief for the duration of the play; I simply couldn't see her as a romantic heroine. Her head was so much bigger than the other cast members' and her physical mobility was painfully constrained. It made my eyes hurt to watch her waddle across the stage when the dancer in the cast floated effortlessly in and out and exited each time with a graceful kitri leap. So in reading Margaret's story, I was able to imagine how the parents and the nuns of the convent she originally entered found it difficult if not impossible to enlarge their vision to embrace her. Perhaps her parents didn't try. "In the day" there was no leg-straightening surgery, and even today there is no cure for dwarfism. Perhaps some would argue it is a condition that needs no cure, but that is a rarefied position to take given the fact of people whose physical mobility is so terribly limited. On the other hand, Simon seemed to have his own limitations. I was hesitant at the description of the stories, the lore, "he encouraged" about himself: born on an ice floe (crossing the Ohio river jumping from ice floe to ice floe wearing a red neckerchief and carrying his five-year-old son Harry while the hounds chased him! escaping from slavery! go Eliza!). Was this guy a smiling grifter, like the reverend hypocrites laying hands on their chosen one, the moral dwarf in the oval office? In the end, though I admired Margaret's childcare service, I went with Canada's mixed-race priest. Perhaps I had Anne of Green Gables in mind as I thought of those tiny white churches with their Rhenish helms. And I had sympathy for the circuit riders, those clergy who travel to far flung parishes to minister and serve the eucharist.
That was some roller coaster, Celia. I couldn't tell where you were going to end up until it was time to get off. Thanks for the ride!
For me, the best thing you said was about the moral dwarf in the oval office. I also voted for Simon, though it was a hard decision. But as a mixed race missionary child of missionaries I had to go with him, even though I loved Margaret's perseverance and overcoming disability.
loved the moral dwarf comment
So my close friend is a dwarf, as is her son. She is the former President of the Little People of America and a disability rights activist. Celia, your use of the term moral dwarf is offensive. My friend and her son are people of great character and faith who both work for the better in their communities. Dwarfism is a genetic condition and yes, there are medical complications. But it is not something to be “cured.” And that type of reasoning is concerning to me as it brings to mind ways in which people with disabilities are made to feel less than, denied agency by others, and historically, maltreated by eugenicists.
IF Margaret blind, how did she teach children to read?
I wondered about the same thing. Maybe one more miraculous bit of sainthood?
Blind doesn't have to mean totally blind. Extremely near-sighted, tunnel vision, centre vision blocked... I have a friend who is blind, even has a dog guide. He can read print held right up to his face.
I enjoyed learning about two new saints today. Well, I actually didn’t like hearing about Margaret’s terrible circumstances!
I voted for Simon, the hearty soul running around the north woods and ice floes of Canada building churches and living his life of faith. Canada’s first Inuit priest? Perhaps he’s the world’s first Inuit priest?
He began life in an orphanage and grew to be what all accounts say was a fun and sturdy cleric. Very cool!
Still smarting from the defeat of St. Patrick yesterday - how can that be???? My father said Patrick was invincible! Truly Lent Madness. 🙂
As for today, I voted for Simon and hope he pulls out a surprise finish. (I know, I know - not likely.) Loved that he was Inuit, that he was received by Queen Victoria and that he was a truly energetic and dedicated "church planter." I also detected a sense of humor in his supposed encouragement of the stories about his efforts. Plus I hate dealing with winter weather and I am in awe of his ability to do so under extreme circumstances!!!
Patricia, the Washington Post reported that the first person in the history of Ireland was bitten by a venomous snake yesterday. There are no snakes in the fossil record since the last Ice Age. There are no laws prohibiting the importation if snakes as pets.
I have a 25-year-old friend who has been up to 80 percent disabled since she was 16. Her pain is apparent, and yet she cheerfully soldiers on. Thankfully, she is loved by her family and all who know her, and she knows the power of prayer (although she is of a totally different faith that borders on Christianity). So, my vote goes to Margaret.
Abandoned by her parents and forced to learn how to beg, but made the best of things?! This is an easy choice for me. Plus, my great-aunt is a Dominican sister.
As the parent of a 34-year-old who is developmentally disabled, I had to go with Margaret!
It was Margaret for me since she overcame so much adversity.
I was torn today, both suffered, but Margaret’s parents abandoning her borders on unforgettable. So I voted for her''
As usual, all honor to both. I voted for Margaret because of grace, hers in loving and giving to others when she was getting no love or support from her parents, and the grace of all others who loved and cared for her when her parents should have been doing so. The source of grace, of course, is God, to Whom thanks be in all such cases.
Surveys show that Canadians - Inuit or otherwise- seldom win. Don’t know what that means and, being a stereotypically polite Canadian, l hesitate to speculate!
Day care provided by a blind woman who had trouble walking...now that is what I call a mighty saint! But, yet again, an Inuit priest swept in on an ice floe? These choices are SO tough, but I had to go with Margaret today.
Simon Gibbons has my LentMadness vote today: Canada’s first Inuit priest and Anglican missionary who constructed a number of churches in Nova Scotia. He’s memorialized by an Inukshuk sculpture and interpretive panel, nearby to one of the churches he built, in Diligent River. To read an article on this memorial site, and to see images of the sculpture and one shot of his descendants (!) check out this article via this LINK: http://www.theshorelinejournal.com/jun1320.pdf
Very interesting. Thank you.
This made my day — thank you!
Yes! This was one of the articles I read as I was writing up Simon Gibbon's bio. I was really hoping to include it in the next round of write-ups, but it's not looking good for us. I'm glad I got to know more about this saint, though — one of the delights of my Lent Madness experience!
Eary in my childhood I learned what beauty existed in someone crippled of body but not of spirit. My Grandmother, totally deaf at 42 and confined to a wheelchair in her early 60's because of rheumatoid arthritis, taught me compassion and respect for those disabled. Now, at a much older age, I have issues that make me walk with a cane or walker. Never will I underestimatet the disabled. Margaret gets my vote.
Two very worthy saints named in today's match up, of course, but who I really want to vote for are that anonymous maid and her 'downstairs' c0-workers, and those beggars, who helped shine the Light so Margaret could live and grow.
Also, what's with the side-eye on Simon's stories? Seems to me that he made a "constructive" response (literally) to a hard life circumstance.
How did Margaret teach children to READ if she herself was born blind?
Margaret's "story" was just too unbelievable for me and it comes from a period of time in which hyperbole ruled. What's not to love in a poor Inuit boy who likely grew up in one of those terrible Indian orphanages, became a priest, and was so committed to the people he would go through freezing conditions to assure they had Christ for Christmas? Definitey Simon for me.
I wear glasses. With out glasses I can see 3 inches in front of me. The world beyond is a blur of colors. If I were to be born in her time I would be considered blind.
The grit of some of the folks I know who have disabilities humbles me. That someone who is blind could teach someone else how to read does not mystify me at all. I am privileged to know blind associates who do computer programing and play 'beeper ball' (baseball with a beeper in the ball)! While Simon has his attraction (Inuit, church builder, priest) and I love all things Canadian Maritimes, I still had to vote Margaret.
Margaret for me. She may have been partly sighted, all you doubting Thomases!
Her quiet persistence with her disabilities should be an inspiration to those of us with physical disabilities.
My husband lives with constant, debilitating pain due to several degenerating discs throughout his spine. Voting for Margaret.
This was a hard one, as a former Early Childhood Educator a big part of me was rooting for Margaret.
However, being from Newfoundland and Labrador, I had to vote for Forteau's son. (and as a former minister in Labrador, just had to vote for the Labradorian/ Newfoundlander.
As I wrote below, before I read your comment, I lived 25 years in Newfoundland and Labrador, in Labrador City for 5 years and 6 winters, as my husband always puts it, and 20 years in Corner Brook. I have visited the Lower North Shore, and Forteau, many times. A beautiful area, quite different from the rest of the province, which is also beautiful but in a different way. I also voted for Simon.
I lived in Lab City for 4 years and 5 years in Corner Brook, also 4 in Happy Valley- Goose Bay.
I truly get your husband's comment on the winters.
My grandmother was crippled with polio. She ran a preschool for children who were limited in their ability to learn. She was a great baby sitter and although she couldn't chase after the children in her care, she told my brothers & me not to go anyplace we could not see her. I find Margaret just as credible as Simon. Sorry I could not vote for each.
I had to vote for Simon as he and my maternal great grandmother were most likely contemporaries. GGM was a much beloved faith healer in eastern Nova Scotia. even the local footpads gave her respect and honor often protecting her from harm.
I wear contact lenses, which correct my dim vision better than glasses ever do. By the grace of God, I have been able to be a singer, music teacher, editor/writer, and finally United Methodist clergy, serving churches and then as a hospital chaplain. I suspect that Margaret was able to see, even with difficulty, and she surely had a gift for teaching and caring for children. When I was a teacher, I had a colleague who was blind, and she taught public-school children to read music! Such things are possible. So I gladly vote for Margaret.
Margaret, because she persisted.